Game Recap: Nuggets defeat Thunder, Warriors continue winning streak, Cavs aim for 15th consecutive victory on March 11

The connection between Jokić and Westbrook, who have a combined 361 triple-doubles and 4 MVPs between them, proved instrumental in helping Denver split its series with OKC.

5 STORIES IN TODAY’S EDITION

March 11, 2025

Denver’s Answer: After falling to West No. 1 OKC Sunday, the second-place Nuggets bounced back Monday

3-Point Parties: Boston makes 3-point history, New York snaps 3-point slump

More Dubs: Now 12-1 with Butler in the lineup, the Warriors keep hold of West’s final Playoff spot

East Play-In Roundup: No movement in the standings, but the margins are getting tighter

Tonight: Cavs go for 2nd 15-game win streak on League Pass, Bucks & Pacers clash on TNT

BUT FIRST … ⏰

More history on the line in Cleveland tonight…

Can Cleveland Repeat? The Cavs opened the season with 15 straight wins for the longest streak in franchise history. Tonight against Brooklyn (7 ET, League Pass), they can match it with a second 15-game run.

First Round Preview? The Bucks & Pacers have held No. 4 and 5 (in either order) for nearly two straight months. Could tonight (7:30 ET, TNT) be a preview of a 2024 Playoff rematch?

1. JOKIĆ, NUGGETS BOUNCE BACK, SPLIT 2-GAME SET IN OKC

On Sunday, OKC used a 41-20 4th quarter to take control and beat the Nuggets in a marquee matchup between the top two players on the Kia MVP Ladder.

On Monday, Denver returned the favor, winning the 2nd half 73-54 to split the two-game set 1-1 and the season series 2-2 with West-leading OKC.

Nuggets 140, Thunder 127: Nikola Jokić (35 pts, 18 reb, 8 ast) and Jamal Murray (34 pts, 6 ast) combined for 69 points to power the Nuggets offense to 140 points – the most allowed by the Thunder all season – as the Nuggets avenged Sunday’s loss. | Recap

Six Piece: All six Nuggets that played at least 20 minutes scored 14+ points as Denver posted 30+ points in all four quarters against the NBA’s top-ranked defense30 & 30: Monday marked the 17th time Jokić and Murray have scored 30+ points in the same regular-season game for their careers. Denver is 12-5 in those gamesAnother One: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (25 pts, 7 ast) posted his 59th straight game with 20+ points. No other player has an active streak in double digitsDarts From Dort: Despite the loss, Lu Dort scored a season-high 26 points and splashed a career-best eight 3s for OKC

Up Next: OKC meets East second seed Boston on Wednesday (7:30 ET), followed by Nuggets-Wolves at 10 — both on ESPN

Nets 111, Lakers 108: In their first game since losing LeBron James to a groin injury on Saturday, the Lakers fell to the Nets despite Luka Dončić’s 5th triple-double (22 pts, 12 ast, 12 reb) of the season.

Noah Clowney and Cam Johnson combined for 37 to help Brooklyn end a seven-game losing streak. | Recap

Grizzlies 120, Suns 118: Powered by Ja Morant’s 29 points and 12 dimes, the Grizzlies overcame a 16-point 1st-quarter deficit and a combined 61 points from Kevin Durant (35) and Devin Booker (26) to win their third straight game despite a late push by Phoenix. | Recap

West Playoff Race Update

DEN ⬆️, LAL ⬇️: The Nuggets’ win and Lakers’ loss sees Denver take over No. 2 and drop L.A. to No. 3 in the West by a gameMEM ↔️: The Grizzlies’ win pulls them even with the Lakers in record, but L.A. holds the head-to-head tiebreaker to keep Memphis at No. 4

2. THREES LEAD THE WAY FOR BOSTON, NEW YORK

On pace to make the most 3-pointers by a team in NBA history, the Celtics entered the record books on Monday in Boston – courtesy of Sam Hauser.

Celtics 114, Jazz 108: Starting in place of Jayson Tatum (knee), Hauser scored a career-best 33 points with nine 3s to help Boston hold off Utah for their 5th straight win. | Recap

In The Zone: Hauser made seven 3s in the 3rd quarter – the most by a Celtic in any quarter in the last 25 yearsHistoric Quartet: The Celtics became the first team in history to have four players hit 9+ threes in a game in a single season, with Hauser joining Tatum (Dec. 21), Payton Prichard and Derrick White (both March 5)

Knicks 133, Kings 104: The Knicks entered Monday’s game in Sacramento on a three-game losing streak, during which they had shot just 24.5% (27-of-110) from 3-point range.

That drought ended Monday, after the Knicks matched a season-high with 22 3s on 55% shooting from beyond the arc to snap that three-game skid. | Recap

A 3-Point Party: Led by Josh Hart and Deuce McBride with four 3s apiece, six Knicks finished with multiple 3s in the win: OG Anunoby (3), Karl-Anthony Towns (3), Landry Shamet (3) and Cam Payne (2)OG Does It All: In addition to his three 3s, Anunoby finished with 24 points, seven boards, eight assists and five steals in the win, while Towns led the Knicks in scoring with 26 points

East Playoff Race Update

(2) BOS ↔️: Boston remains firmly in the No. 2 spot, 7.5 games back of No. 1 Cleveland and 5.5 games up on No. 3 New York(3) NYK ↔️: With the win, NY increases its lead over No. 4 Milwaukee to 4.5 games

3. WARRIORS STAY AHEAD IN WEST PLAYOFF VS. PLAY-IN RACE

The Warriors entered Monday in a virtual tie (up .002 in win percentage) with the Wolves on opposing sides of the Playoff (No. 6 Golden State) and Play-In (No. 7 Minnesota) line.

A 5th straight dub by the Dubs just gave the Warriors a little breathing room.

Warriors 130, Blazers 120: Golden State had four 20+ point scorers – Gary Payton II (26), Steph Curry (25), Moses Moody and Buddy Hield (20 each) — as they overcame 66 points from Deni Avdija and Anfernee Simons, never trailing after the 1st quarter. | Recap

Jimmy ‘Getting More Than’ Buckets: Butler (15 pts, 10 reb, 10 ast) posted his 1st triple-double with the Warriors, who are now 12-1 with Jimmy in the lineupSteph 2 Treys Away: Curry hit five 3s to bring his career total to 3,998, just two shy of becoming the 1st player to reach 4K triples

Mavericks 133, Spurs 129: Dallas also had four players score 20+ points – Spencer Dinwiddie (28), Klay Thompson (26), Naji Marshall (23) and Kessler Edwards (22) – to improve to 3-0 against San Antonio ahead of Wednesday’s season-series finale. | Recap

West Playoff & Play-In Race Updates

(6) GSW ↔️: The Warriors go up 0.5 games on idle Minnesota(7) MIN ↔️: Did not play on Monday, on five-game win streak(8) LAC ↔️: Did not play on Monday, on three-game win streak(9) SAC ↔️: With Monday’s loss, trail No. 8 LA Clippers by 2.0 games, up 1.0 game on No. 10 Dallas(10) DAL ↔️: With Monday’s win, trail No. 9 Sacramento by 1.0 game, up 2.5 on No. 11 Phoenix(11) PHX ↔️: With Monday’s loss, trail No. 10 Dallas by 2.5 games, but still holds head-to-head tiebreaker

4. RACES TIGHTEN IN EAST PLAY-IN RACE

Hawks 132, Sixers 123: Playing without Trae Young (quad), Dyson Daniels scored a team-high 25 points, while Zaccharie Risacher added his 4th 20+ point game of his rookie season to lead the Hawks past Quentin Grimes (35 points) and the Sixers for their third straight win. | Recap

Houston 97, Magic 84: Jabari Smith Jr. (20 pts, 5 3pm) led five Rockets in double figures, but it was the Houston defense that shined, holding Orlando to 84 points and 32.6% shooting, to earn their 3rd straight win. Orlando falls to 3-22 when held under 100 points this season. | Recap

Hornets 105, Heat 102: Three of Miles Bridges’ eight career games with 35+ points have come in the past week – the latest on Monday to lead the Hornets past the Heat after trailing by as many as 17. LaMelo Ball and Mark Williams added double-doubles for Charlotte. | Recap

Bulls 121, Pacers 103: A pair of 29-point games from Josh Giddey and Coby White lifted the Bulls to their first three-game win streak since December as they look to climb the Play-In standings, while sending the Pacers to their 3rd straight loss. | Recap

East Play-In Race Update

(7) ATL ↔️: The Hawks move 1.5 games up on No. 8 Orlando and on No. 9 Miami(8) ORL ↔️: The Magic hold at No. 8 by percentage points over Miami (also own tiebreaker)(9) MIA ↔️: The Heat drop their fourth straight and remain No. 9(10) CHI ↔️: The Bulls move within 2.5 games of No. 9 Miami

Raptors 119, Wizards 104: A.J. Lawson posted career-highs across the board – 32 points, 12 rebounds and seven 3s – to lead the Raptors past the Wizards. RJ Barrett (14 pts, 10 reb, 8 ast) and Scottie Barnes (14 pts, 13 reb) each added double-doubles in the win. | Recap

5. TUESDAY PREVIEW: CAVS AIM FOR 15TH STRAIGHT WIN; BUCKS, PACERS CLASH

The Cavaliers’ historic season could get even more memorable if they can complete the season sweep of the Nets tonight (7 ET, League Pass).

Cavs On A Roll (Again): Cleveland enters Tuesday having won 14 straight games and are in the midst of their third 12+ winning streak of the seasonDuring the streak, they became the 2nd team in NBA history to win 14 straight games while scoring 110+ in each, joining the 1985-86 champion CelticsWith a win tonight, the Cavs would become just the 6th team in NBA history with two separate 15+ win streaks and the 2nd team since 2000, joining the 2006-07 Suns

The Cavs offense has been electric, with a league-leading 122.0 offensive rating. Led by Donovan Mitchell and Darius Garland, Cleveland has thrived in the pick-and-roll, creating a buffet of options on the floor.

The Ball Handler: When running pick-and-rolls, Cavs’ handlers lead the NBA averaging 24.9 pointer per game

The Roll Man: Jarrett Allen (1st) and Evan Mobley (9th) both rank in the top 10 in roll man efficiency and are the only duo to rank in the top 15 (min 100 possessions)

 

Cleveland is on pace to win 68 games this season, which would set a new franchise record. Their previous record of 66 wins was set during the 2008-09 season, the same year LeBron James won his first MVP.

Bucks and Pacers on TNT (7:30 ET): The NBA’s stretch run is underway and that means Playoff races are ramping up.

Milwaukee and Indiana have held No. 4 or No. 5 in the East – in some order – every day dating back to Jan. 15. Separated by just one game, the two teams are battling for home-court advantage in the opening round in what could be a 2024 Playoff rematch.

Head-To-Head: These teams meet tonight and Saturday to close out their four-game season series. Milwaukee, leading 2-0, needs one win to clinch the tiebreakerFreak-ish Numbers: Since 2020-21, Giannis Antetokounmpo has averaged 36.6 points, 12.7 rebounds and 6.5 assists on 66.9 FG% in 15 games vs. the Pacers, including a Bucks franchise-record 60-point performance last seasonIndy On The Rise: The Pacers have found their stride on the offensive end in 2025, ranking 6th in points per game (119.0), 2nd in field goal percentage (49.5%), 6th in offensive rating (118.4) and 6th in true shooting percentage (60.1%).

Two more games tip off on League Pass, as the Pistons, 10-3 in their last 13 games, host the Wizards (7 ET), and the Clippers seek their fourth straight win as they visit the Pelicans (8 ET).